Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is the unicameral parliament of Ukraine and the country's sole legislative body. It consists of 450 members of parliament elected for five-year terms through proportional representation. It is led by a Chairman and is seated in Kyiv on Hrushevskoho Street.
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Ukraine and Moldova sign five-year military-technical cooperation agreement
Moldovan Prime Minister Vasile Tofan visited Kyiv on 26 October with three ministers. Ukraine and Moldova signed a five-year military-technical cooperation agreement and agreed to revive the Odesa Triangle and their intergovernmental trade and economic commission.
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Ukraine extends martial law and general mobilization until January 29, 2027
Ukraine’s parliament voted on October 26, 2026, to extend martial law and general mobilization for another 90 days, through January 29, 2027. The martial-law bill drew 293 votes in favor, while the mobilization bill was supported by 281 deputies, according to the confirmed parliamentary count.
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Ukrainian forces deliver over 600 kg of aid to children in occupied Oleshky
Ukrainian National Guard personnel delivered 15 packages of children’s food and toys to occupied Oleshky using drones on October 24. The packages weighed more than 600 kg and were intended for families with children. The operation took place amid a humanitarian blockade and preparations for a possible evacuation.
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Pina Picierno ends hunger strike for occupied Oleshky after talks on humanitarian ceasefire
European Parliament Vice President Pina Picierno ended the hunger strike she began on 20 October to draw attention to the humanitarian situation in occupied Oleshky. Ukrainian human-rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets said progress on arrangements for a local ceasefire, aid delivery and civilian evacuation had been achieved and that the strike had become a serious health risk.
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Ukraine and Russia agree local ceasefire in occupied Oleshky for aid and civilian evacuation
Ukraine and Russia have agreed a local ceasefire and humanitarian mission in occupied Oleshky, providing for aid deliveries and civilian movement through a designated safe corridor. The operation is intended to establish longer-term humanitarian corridors, with the General Staff saying Ukrainian forces are ready to carry it out. Ukrainian officials say the mission will be gradual and exceptionally difficult.
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Trump administration weighs easing sanctions on Russian 'shadow fleet' tankers to cut freight rates
The Trump administration is considering easing US sanctions on vessels of the so-called Russian "shadow fleet" so they can carry non-sanctioned oil and petroleum products, aiming to lower record-high global tanker freight rates and boost Persian Gulf exports. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright raised the issue in a video address to the World Petroleum Congress in Riyadh this week. The move comes days after Trump temporarily lifted sanctions on Russian diesel, a step that drew sharp criticism from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, European countries, and some Republican senators.
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EU opens two more accession clusters with Ukraine after Kyiv passes minority-language education law
On 13 October, the EU officially opened negotiating clusters 2 (Internal Market) and 3 (Competitiveness and Inclusive Growth) in Ukraine's accession talks at the fourth Intergovernmental Conference in Luxembourg. The move followed the Verkhovna Rada's approval — by 266 of 450 MPs — and President Zelensky's same-day signing of a law guaranteeing national minorities and indigenous peoples whose languages are official EU languages the right to education in their native language alongside Ukrainian.
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EU could open two new accession clusters for Ukraine and Moldova next week, commissioner says
European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos said on 5 October that the EU could open the next two accession-negotiation clusters — 'Internal Market' and 'Competitiveness and Inclusive Growth' — for Ukraine and Moldova as early as next week, at an intergovernmental conference in Luxembourg. The opening is conditional on Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada passing a national-minority education bill demanded by Hungary.
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Ukraine's parliament backs reboot of energy regulator in first reading
On 16 September, the Verkhovna Rada adopted draft law No. 14282 in its first reading, with 249 MPs voting in favour. The bill aims to strengthen the independence of the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Utility Services (NKREKP) and set the stage for a full reboot of the regulator after adoption. It also responds to a major corruption case in the energy sector by seeking to remove associates of the implicated figures from the body.
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Japanese House Speaker Eisuke Mori makes first visit to Ukraine, greeted by Verkhovna Rada chairman
Eisuke Mori, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Japanese Parliament, arrived in Ukraine on September 14 on his first visit to the country. He was met at a Kyiv railway station by Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament. The two had met the previous day on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Paris.